Clarks Village, Street, Somerset
Tony Benger Landscaping was invited to tender for the ground’s maintenance of Clarks Village back in 2013, the management of the centre were keen to change the landscaping away from evergreen hedges and plastic pots filled with bedding plants to something more structured and interesting with year round appeal and the all important “Wow” factor.
After presenting our tender we were awarded the contract based on our ability to both design, install and maintain the landscaping to the high standards the center needed. The Landscaping changes have been constant ever since, removing the evergreen hedging and replacing it with eye-catching feature plants and underplanting, both chosen to provide structure and year-round interest.
In 2016 we entered Clarks for a BALI award based on the changes that had taken place and were thrilled to win both for the team on site who delivered such great work and for the management of the centre who had taken the decision to appoint us.
Working at Clarks has been a terrific experience for us, the dedication of the site management to deliver high quality landscaping and the desire to see things changing and evolving has made it a brilliant project to be involved with. It has come with challenges, several million visitors each year takes a huge toll on the landscaping along with the logistical difficulties of working safely with the public often in close proximity.
In 2015 we were instructed to improve a large courtyard close to the main entrance at Clarks Village. There was a bench with a small plastic pot filled with bedding at each end which was lost in the large open space our brief was to design an instillation that would be memorable and eye catching.
We wanted some large planters but were unable to find exactly what we wanted, which lead to having 3 large containers custom made in exactly the sizes we wanted. The planting was chosen to have structure and year-round interest with much of the planting changing several times each year to give a different feel to visitors returning to the centre.
It is common when visiting site to see members of the public having their photos taken beside this instillation which is always rewarding for the team and the instillation has become a favourite with site staff and visitors alike